


Anxiety:  The Real Life Horror Story

by h311agay



Series: Essays for School [12]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Anxiety, Anxiety Attacks, Anxiety Disorder, Social Anxiety
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-28
Updated: 2014-02-28
Packaged: 2018-01-14 02:16:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1249021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/h311agay/pseuds/h311agay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I had to write in editorial in Engish class, this was it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Anxiety:  The Real Life Horror Story

Anxiety: The Real Life Horror Story  
Your heart is pounding. Your hands are sweating. Your head spins and you can taste the bile in your throat. No matter what you do, no matter what you say, you can’t stop shaking and you feel as if you’re going to cry. Your body is tense; you can’t move and you can’t breathe. Your head begins to throb and you’re ready to pass out. This situation I’m describing to you is not some action scene or a deathly moment. It is a teenager standing in front of their class, having an anxiety attack.  
Anxiety attacks are real and they are scary. There are many types of anxiety, but the one that affects me the most is social anxiety. I cannot stand up in front of my class and give a presentation without feeling judged, ridiculed, humiliated, and hated. I’m not the only student that this affects, either. In fact, over 15 million Americans suffer from social anxiety which is 6.8% of the population and it’s most common in teenagers and young adults. 1 in 8 students are affected by this, meaning that there are – on average – 1 or 2 students per class with some type of anxiety disorder. Students in high school and in college are sometimes forced to go up in front of their class and give a speech. Or maybe they need to give a presentation. Whichever it is, and no matter how long, it can still cause a severe anxiety or panic attack in the student. The person is often told to suck it up, or that they need to get used to it. Nothing makes someone with social anxiety feel worse about themselves when they’re told that they have to get used to speaking in front of groups because it is a part of daily life. In fact, the thought of having to do that every day can send them into another attack.  
I don’t think it’s right to have a student go up in front of a class and speak if it upsets them enough to cause an anxiety attack. Teachers shouldn’t have that as a requirement. Some students are just much more comfortable writing a paper instead of giving a speech. Granted, speeches are a great way to get over a fear of public speaking or to get used to speaking in front of crowds. However, when it comes to medically being diagnosed with anxiety, it only makes matters worse.  
Two years ago, I was diagnosed with anxiety along with a few other things. The next year, I was required to go up and give a presentation to my computers class. I tried to tell the teacher that I couldn’t do it, that I would have a panic attack. She didn’t listen to me. I ended up sobbing in front of the class and even passing out afterwards. She never even apologized for making me go up even though I wasn’t mentally stable for such things. This is happening to students all the time. Some end up puking in front of the class or fainting before they even start. Anxiety can cause some serious problems and forcing someone with anxiety to do things they aren’t capable of doing is dangerous and rude.  
Teachers shouldn’t create projects or assignments that require the students to come up and present it. There should always be other options. Some students are better at speaking whereas others are better at writing. I understand that the schools want to make their students well-rounded in order to offer them every possible option in life. However, a student with anxiety isn’t going to go looking for a career that requires them to publicly speak. They’re going to go for something more private.  
Teachers should eliminate the requirement of speeches in class from their criteria and give students options that make them comfortable. If someone wanted to get better at public speaking, they could join speech club. Anxiety is a real life horror story, and making someone with it do things they aren’t mentally stable with doing doesn’t help make it better. Students should feel free and comfortable in their class rooms, not restrained and scared. If I wanted my heart to pound in my chest, my body to shake in fear, and my head get dizzy, I’d watch a horror film. Take away speech requirements; they only mess us up.

**Author's Note:**

> I got some of the information from these two sites:  
> http://www.adaa.org/about-adaa/press-room/facts-statistics  
> http://www.helpguide.org/mental/anxiety_types_symptoms_treatment.htm


End file.
